The present invention relates to an apparatus for automatically taping electronic components, by which electronic components transferred from a preceding process are moved onto a base tape and fixed thereto with an adhesive tape.
Conventionally, an apparatus for automatically taping radial lead type electronic components having wire type lead terminals is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,954,207. This apparatus is designed to tape electronic components whose terminals have been previously fitted into nicks of a ground paper tape, and has three rotary drums. The electronic components arranged at an equal pitch on the paper tape are received on the outer peripheral surface of a first drum, where the lead terminals are extracted from the paper tape. The extracted electronic components are then moved onto a second drum, where the pitch of arrangement is changed. The electronic components are further moved onto a third drum, where the lead terminals are fixed between the base tape and the adhesive tape, thus completing the taping processes.
Since the above-described apparatus involves the process of extracting the electronic components from the paper tape on the first drum, the construction of the first drum has become complicated. Moreover, the electronic components may drop off or the lead terminals may be deformed when the extraction process is carried out at high speed, thus making obstacles to further enhancement in the speed of the apparatus as well as to its reliability.
Also, since the paper tape cannot be used again after extraction, there was a need for disposal processing of the paper tape.
Furthermore, where electronic components have plate-type lead terminals formed from hoop materials, and those electronic components are introduced into the taping apparatus discretely, one by one, without being supported by the paper tape. The above described automatic taping apparatus, that depends on use of a paper tape, can not be used.